Israeli forces open fire at Gaza farmers

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Israeli forces opened fire at Palestinian farmers in the central Gaza Strip, according to locals.

Sources told Ma’an that Israeli forces, stationed along the border between Gaza and Israel, fired at Palestinian farmers working their lands east of the al-Mughazi refugee camp in central Gaza.

Meanwhile, in the Beit Lahiya area of the northern coastal enclave, Israeli forces opened fire on agricultural lands.

No injuries were reported in either incident.

An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma’an they were looking into reports.

Israeli military incursions inside the besieged Gaza Strip and near the “buffer zone," which lies on both land and sea sides of Gaza, have long been a near-daily occurrence.

The Israeli army also regularly detains and opens fire on unarmed Palestinian fishermen, shepherds, and farmers along the border areas if they approach the buffer zone, as the authorities have not made clear the precise area of the designated zone.

The practice has in effect destroyed much of the agricultural and fishing sector of the blockaded coastal enclave, which has been under an Israeli air, land, and sea blockade for 10 years.